Another Trip into Wonderland
by Sci-Fi Nut
Summary: ***Complete*** Several months following their confrontation with Osiris, SG-1 unwittingly embarks on an entirely new adventure that takes them to a place in which humanity is all but lost.
1. Default Chapter

Title:                 Another Trip into Wonderland              

Author:             Sci-Fi Nut

Category:         Action/ Adventure/ Suspense

Pairings:            Sam/Jack (however this is primarily a team adventure)

Spoilers:           General spoilers for all episodes through Season 4 

Season:            Placed toward the end of Season 4

Rating:              PG-13 

Content Warnings: None 

Sequel:             This is a sequel to my earlier story **_The Face of the Enemy_** and although it contains several references to the previous storyline, I have tried to summarize when           necessary so that this story may stand on its own.

Summary:         Several months following their confrontation with Osiris, SG-1 unwittingly embarks on an entirely new adventure that takes them to a place in which humanity is all but  lost.  Can SG-1 find a way to overcome the horrific chain of events they have been faced with or will humanity suffer annihilation at the hands of the Goa'uld? 

Disclaimer:        They aren't mine, not now, not ever.  Thanks to the Stargate Gods for letting me borrow their creations if only for a short while. And... no money has exchanged hands before, during or after this story was written.  

**Author's Note:**  I posted this story about a year ago and just recently went back through to clean it up a bit (spelling errors, etc.)  For those of you who have read it previously, the content has not really changed although I will be posting it in approximately 10 parts rather than in one posting.  By the way, this is a sequel to my other story The Face of the Enemy (also found here on Fanfic.Net) and while it does refer back to a few of the scenarios from the original story, I have tried to make it so that it can be read as a stand alone fic. As always, I hope you enjoy the story and I would really appreciate your feedback.  Now, you all don't need to torch me or start an inferno or anything like that, but reviews are always nice (good or bad) as they help me to improve on my writing style. So, without further stalling on my part.... On to the story!!!!!     ~Jules 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Chapter One

Jack sat at his desk staring blankly at the papers that lay before him.  'Mission reports' he thought to himself as he waded up another piece of paper and sent it flying toward the wastepaper basket across the room.  The small bundle missed its mark and bounced off the wall to land in a heap alongside several other objects that had met the same fate.  "It figures," he said aloud, the words echoing off the walls.  The truth of the matter was that Jack O'Neill was bored.  Things had been too quiet since their encounter with Osiris and paperwork was just not his idea of a good time.  'Although it's hard to find anything that compares with blowing up a snakehead's mother ship' he thought to himself with a sense of satisfaction 'unless of course you get to blow up two mother ships' he smiled, leaning back in his chair.  And that is exactly what SG-1 had recently done.  After gating to a planet and taking an unexpected trip across the universe, the team had found themselves face to face with Osiris.  True, they had planned to blow up the first mother ship but they had barely made it off the ship in one piece before detonation.  After a crash landing and coming within feet of making it back home through the stargate, Jack and Daniel had found themselves on Osiris's ship with their only hope of escape in the hands of an undercover Tokra operative named Ry'el.  'And then the cavalry charged in' he thought remembering the very unevenly matched firefight between Ry'el and Osiris' Jaffa.  It was then that Sam and Teal'c, along with SG-3, had rounded the corner and unintentionally stepped into the fight.   Again, just as they were within feet of making their escape, Osiris stepped in to foil their plans.  'If it hadn't been for Carter and that hand thingy we would have all been toast' he muttered to himself as he remembered the scene that played out in the cargo hold of the ship.  SG-6 stood off to the side, guarded by Jaffa while more Jaffa guarded SG-1 and SG-3 from behind.  Osiris was just about to use the hand device on him when Sam pulled a rabbit out of her hat, 'or in this case, a Goa'uld hand device out of her pocket' he thought to himself, and bested Osiris. It was then that Sam and Teal'c had surprised them all by bringing out a small device, a device that turned out to be a Naquada enhanced bomb. 'Of course, the snakehead got away' he thought in disgust remembering how Osiris had regained consciousness and run from the cargo hold just before his team used the transport rings to return to the planet and ultimately, travel back to Earth via the stargate.  "But still, the damned thing blew up in the end" he murmured with satisfaction as he thought back to the spectacular display they were treated to as they looked to the sky.  It was the last thing he saw as he stepped through the gate and returned to the safety of the SGC.  It wasn't until a little while later that Tokra intelligence had delivered the news that Osiris had managed to escape from the ship before detonation.   And now, two months later, nothing had been heard of Osiris.  Nothing had been heard from any of the Goa'uld recently leaving Jack to wonder what they might be up to.

Hearing a knock on his office door, he looked up to see Teal'c quietly standing in the doorway.  "Teal'c ole' buddy, what's up?" he asked, glad to have a distraction from the mound of paperwork.

Glancing briefly at the ceiling the Jaffa raised one eyebrow in question as he replied, "I do not see anything that could be described as being "up" O'Neill."

Giving his friend a bemused expression he sighed and explained "No, Teal'c.  It's just an expression.  It's another way of asking 'how are you?' or 'what's going on?" 

"I see" the Jaffa replied wearing an expression that clearly stated he did not. He wondered yet again, why the Tauri simply did not say what they meant instead of inventing confusing jargon that, in his opinion, served no purpose other than to waste time.   "What is 'up'" he continued, pausing as he repeated the unfamiliar jargon, "is that Major Carter and Daniel Jackson thought you might wish to partake of an afternoon meal together in the cafeteria."

"You mean 'lunch' in the mess hall?" the Colonel questioned, standing up and walking to the front of his desk.

"Is that not what I just said O'Neill?" the Jaffa answered leaning his head slightly to one side in question.

Deciding that he would never win out on this particular topic, Jack decided to let the conversation drop and see what Daniel and Carter were up to.  'Someone on this base has to be doing something interesting' he thought to himself 'and if not, then I'll just have to settle for trying to make Carter giggle.'   Giving Teal'c a small smile he merely replied "sure, lunch sounds great, even if it is base food."   And on that note, they exited the office and made their way toward Sam's lab. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Jack allowed himself a small smile as they walked down the corridor towards Samantha Carter's office.  He was very fond of his second in command for a number of reasons. 'What's not to like?' he asked himself as he thought about the woman who had occupied so much of his thoughts lately.  'She's brilliant' he continued thinking to himself and smiled as he remembered the whole 'Doctor/ Captain' discussion during their first meeting, 'she's an excellent officer' he continued his musings reflecting on the many different missions they had shared, 'and she's beautiful' he concluded remembering various images of his 2IC.  Images of their first meeting as she walked into the briefing room dressed in full uniform, images of her in Shivadai dress, images of casual attire during down time…. 'Better stop right there' he admonished himself 'before you remember more than you can handle.  She's your 2IC and therefore OFF LIMITS' he all but shouted to himself as he focused on the walk toward her office.  And that was the problem.  They both knew they had feelings for one another and they both had agreed to place those feelings on hold for another time.  A time when they wouldn't be breaking fraternization regulations, a time when they wouldn't be jeopardizing their careers by risking a court martial and a time when they wouldn't be needed to defend the Earth against the Goa'uld.    

Reaching her lab, Jack noticed that she and Daniel were gathered over a small cylindrical object that shined brightly as a result of the fluorescent lighting which illuminated the small underground lab.  "How's it going guys?" he asked as he and Teal'c entered the room.

Looking up from her inspection of the object, Sam gave a wry smile as she saw the Colonel approaching.  "Not too well" she responded grimacing at the device that rested on the countertop in front of them.  "Daniel and I have been studying this object that SG-14 brought back the other day from their mission on P3X 964 but so far we haven't had any luck in figuring out what it is."

"The inscriptions seem to indicate that it might be some sort of travel device but I can't be sure until I've done a little more research on the translations" Daniel said indicating a small band of alien markings that were imprinted on the outside casing.

"Sounds like…fun" the Colonel replied, wondering if he might actually have had a better time sitting at his desk and staring absently at his mission reports.   

Knowing how bored her CO could get when it came to discussions of unknown alien artifacts, Sam looked up and said, "We'll be ready to go to lunch in just a moment sir.  We just have to close this panel and…" she stopped as she heard a small hum come from the object and a few of the buttons on the outside casing began to glow.

"It's never done that before" Daniel said as he warily eyed the device.  

"Oh?" the Colonel questioned looking first to Daniel and then back to Sam.  "Well, what's it doing now and what started it?"

"I don't know sir, it looks like it had something jammed in the mechanism," Sam answered holding up a small wiry looking object.  This started when I pulled it out."   

"Well, seeing that we don't know what it does yet, maybe we should put it back or turn the thing off or something…" the Colonel muttered sarcastically only stopping as the hum from the device grew louder and the lights began to flash more rapidly.

"You may be right sir," Sam replied as she attempted to return the object to its previous position.  Suddenly, the device emitted a small beam of light that bathed the room in a pinkish glow.  The team members covered their ears as the whine from the device grew to an ear shattering level making them feel as if their eardrums would burst.  And then, everything went black. 

TBC

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	2. Chapter Two

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Chapter Two

Teal'c was the first to regain consciousness.  Sitting up slowly, he took in his surroundings noting the lack of light in the lab.  'Perhaps the energy emitted from the device has something to do with the lack of illumination' he thought to himself.  The second thing he noticed, thanks to the small band of light coming from the corridor, were the unconscious bodies of his friends scattered on the floor.  At least he hoped they were merely unconscious.  Moving to where the Colonel lay, he placed his fingers against the man's throat and sat quietly for a moment.  Feeling a steady pulse at the base of his friend's neck, the Jaffa breathed a small sigh of relief.  Evidently the device had merely rendered them unconscious after all.  "O'Neill," the Jaffa called, gently shaking the Colonel.  Receiving no response from his friend, he shook him a little harder and repeated in a louder voice "O'Neill, you must awaken."

That was enough to bring the commanding officer of SG-1 back to consciousness.  Grabbing his head, he sat up and groggily looked around.  "What the …" he muttered in confusion as he surveyed the scene before him.  The last thing he remembered was heading towards Carter's lab for lunch and then…  'Oh yeah, another ARTIFACT' he thought to himself as he recalled the strange pink light and the ear breaking noise the device had emitted.  "Teal'c?"

"It is I, O'Neill," the warrior acknowledged.  

"What happened?  The last thing I remember is the noise from that doohickey Carter was fiddling with.  And what happened to the lights in this place?" he asked as he stood up.

"It seems we were rendered unconscious by the device that Major Carter and Daniel Jackson were examining.  They both remain unconscious at this time" Teal'c replied looking to the bodies of his remaining friends.

"Let's wake them up. Maybe Carter can figure out what went wrong.  Somehow, I doubt that thing was created just to knock people out" the Colonel grumbled as he made his way over to his second in command.

"It would make for an effective weapon if that should prove to be its purpose" the Jaffa pointed out.

"True" Jack agreed.  "Set the doohickey up in a room full of enemies, push the button and whamo!  It's instant naptime for those who ail you.  The only problem is that you have to knock yourself out in the process."

"Indeed" the man agreed.

Turning his attention back to Sam he gently nudged her in an effort to wake her.  "Carter" he called softly waiting for her to regain consciousness.  Not receiving a response, he pulled her unconscious form into a sitting position and called more insistently "Major Carter wake up and that's an order!"  As he had figured, Sam began to emerge from her sleeping state and gazed around the room, her face twisting questioningly in a display of momentary confusion.  'Always the good little soldier' he thought to himself wryly.

"Sir?" she asked as she recognized the form of her commanding officer hovering over her.

"Welcome back to the land of the living Carter" the Colonel replied as he helped her stand up.  "It seems your doohickey over there put the whammy on us and we all took a little nap.  Any ideas on what went wrong?"

"No sir, at least not yet.  Where's Daniel?" she asked as she attempted to look around the lab.

"Right here" the archeologist replied after thanking Teal'c for his assistance.  "How long have we been out and what happened to the lights?"

Pulling his sleeve up, Jack pushed the small button on his watch that would illuminate the faceplate and gasped.  "Four hours?" he all but shouted in disbelief, poking at the timepiece to see if it had malfunctioned. 

Hearing his exclamation, each member looked at their own watches in turn and confirmed the Colonel's findings.  It had indeed been four hours since the device had been activated.   

Not understanding what was going on but knowing that he had to do something, Jack turned his attention to Daniel. "Daniel, turn the lights back on.  I'm tired of running around in the dark.  Carter, I want you and Daniel to figure out what that thing is supposed to do.  Teal'c and I will go talk to Hammond.  And does anyone else have a hard time believing that NOBODY came by in the last four hours or noticed our absence… or is it just me?" he called over his shoulder as he and Teal'c exited the room in search of General Hammond. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Something's not right" Jack murmured as he and Teal'c walked through the deserted corridors. 

"Indeed" the Jaffa agreed.  "Should there not be SGC personnel on duty this afternoon?"

"Ah, yeah" Jack confirmed. "We've yet to see one person and why is the entire base on back-up generators and emergency lighting? What the heck happened in the last four hours?"   

"I do not know O'Neill but I do not think we will find General Hammond on this base" Teal'c replied.

"I'm beginning to agree with you," the Colonel grumbled as they stepped into the General's office.  "Great, it's deserted, just like everything else around here. Let's head to the gate room and see if we can find anything there that will help us figure this mess out."

A couple of minutes later after checking the control room and finding it empty they walked into the gate room and looked around.  "I don't see anything out of the ordinary, do you?" the Colonel asked his teammate.

"I do not" Teal'c replied with a very grim expression on his face.  "There are no signs to indicate hostile forces came through the gate," he concluded as he checked the walls for scorch marks that might have come from staff weapons or any other type of artillery.  "Perhaps there was a malfunction that made it necessary for the base to be temporarily evacuated," he suggested.

"Maybe.  It would explain the backup generators but it doesn't explain why we were left in Carter's lab.  If a base wide evacuation was ordered then a quick sweep would have been done to check for stragglers.  Or in this case…us" the Colonel said.  "Why don't you search the control room while I make some phone calls in the briefing room."

"Very well O'Neill" the Jaffa said. With a small nod of his head, he exited the gate room and headed toward the control room hoping to turn up something that would help explain what had taken place while they were asleep. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Jack O'Neill sat at the long briefing table and slammed the phone down for the fourth time.  Annoyed and confused, he sighed and placed his head in his hands.  "It just doesn't make sense," he muttered in frustration for the umpteenth time as he looked around the briefing room.  

"I concur" called the Jaffa's voice from the doorway. Striding further into the room, he paused at the briefing table and claimed his customary seat. 

"So…did you find anything?" the Colonel asked with a facial expression that clearly said he already knew the Jaffa had not.

"There was nothing to assist us in our search O'Neill" the man responded.  "However, the computer data regarding the last gate coordinates has been erased."

"The phones aren't working either.  I can get a dial tone but no answer.  Not even from an outside operator.  And from the state of things around here it almost looks as if the base had been quarantined, which means that the only way out would have been through the stargate" the Colonel mused.

"It is indeed puzzling.  Perhaps Major Carter and Daniel Jackson have had more success in their endeavors" Teal'c suggested.

"Yeah maybe.  Let's head back to the lab and check in," the Colonel said as he stood and made his way to the door.  Taking a final look around the briefing room, he paused momentarily and shook his head.  "I don't know Teal'c.  Do things seem a little 'off' to you?"

"Off?" the Jaffa questioned.

"Yeah, you know…off.  Not quite right.  Sort of different and…out of place" he elaborated, trying to explain something to his friend that he couldn't quite yet clarify in his own mind.

"We are the only members of the SGC remaining on the base O'Neill," Teal'c reasoned.  "However, things do seem to be 'off'" he agreed.

They made the journey to Sam's lab in complete silence, each man's mind running through countless of possible scenarios in an attempt to explain the oddities they were now faced with. However, it was clear that one thing could no longer be denied: SG-1 was alone in the underground base and they were no closer to an explanation… 

TBC

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	3. Chapter Three

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Chapter Three

"Deja vu" Jack exclaimed as he and Teal'c re-entered the lab.  The sight that greeted them was very reminiscent of their entry to the lab earlier in the day.  Sam and Daniel stood hunched over the alien device and were conversing quietly.  The only difference being the countertop that previously held the device now held both the device and stacks of books which Daniel was pouring over in an obvious attempt to finish deciphering the writing found on the outer casing. 

"Hello sir" Sam said as they entered the room.  "We think we may be a little closer to figuring out what happened but we need to know what you found before we can be sure."

"Well…if you must know…Teal'c and I found nothing, as in zip, nada, zilch, bubkus" the Colonel said, warily eyeing the alien artifact.  

"Nothing?" Daniel questioned. 

"Nothing, Daniel Jackson" Teal'c confirmed.  "We are the only personnel remaining at the SGC."

"So…there's no one else at all?" Daniel asked looking to Sam with a worried expression. 

"Not a soul Daniel.  So what's the deal with that…thing" the Colonel asked waving his fingers to indicate the alien artifact.  "Is it the cause of all of this or not?"

"Well, yes and no sir" Sam replied glancing away.  

"Care to elaborate on that a bit Carter?" Jack asked with his typical inflection of sarcasm. 

Giving him an uncomfortable smile that clearly indicated he wasn't going to like the explanation, she took a deep breath and tentatively began.   "Well sir, the device is responsible for knocking us out which was a result of the whining we heard it emit just before we blacked out but…" she stopped momentarily and looked to Daniel whose expression mirrored her own. 

"Carter, spit it out" the Colonel said flatly.

"Yes sir.  Anyway, as I was saying, the device is responsible for knocking us out and placing us 'here' but it isn't responsible for whatever happened to the base personnel.  Not directly anyway" she finished.

"Do you have any idea what she's talking about?" Jack asked Teal'c as he tried to make sense of what his 2IC was telling him.  

"I do not" the Jaffa replied raising one eyebrow in question as he waited for Sam to continue with her explanation. 

"Basically sir, it's an alternate reality device.  It takes us from our own universe and transports us to one that mirrors our own" she concluded.

"Then it is comparable to the quantum mirror Daniel Jackson discovered previously?" Teal'c questioned. 

"Exactly" Sam replied.

"Well from what we just saw, this base is nothing like our own.  Our SGC is crawling with people and this one doesn't have anything, or should I say…anyone?" Jack asked wondering how they were going to return home with nothing more than a faulty alien device to rely on. 

"I know sir.  As we've seen previously, the variations in realities can range from minute to vastly different.  This reality seems to have taken, what looks to be, a radically different course but the setting that we've found ourselves in is virtually the same.  It's the circumstances that are different," the Major concluded. 

"Jack," Daniel began, "I think we need to find out what happened here.  It may have some bearing on things to come in our own reality."

"Or, we could just get Carter here to fix that doohickey and zap us back to our own reality" the Colonel said. 

"I think Daniel's right sir," Sam intervened.  "We've seen in the past that information gained from an alternate reality can aid us and in this case it might help to know what happened that would possibly have caused an entire base to be abandoned."

Looking between the archeologist and his 2IC, Jack mentally shook his head and sighed.  Somehow he knew that going home wasn't going to be so easy but for once it would be _so_ nice just to leave without a lot of fuss.  After all, they had enough mysteries to solve in their own universe so why did they have to worry about alternate universes as well?  Not to mention the fact that leaving now meant there wouldn't be any injuries or Goa'ulds to run into.   "Fine" he replied.  "Carter, I'm assuming that knocking us out wasn't part of the designer's original intent," he said indicating the alien device.  "So, why did it malfunction and how long before you can repair it?" 

"Do you remember that small object that I removed from the device just before it activated?" Sam asked.  Seeing the Colonel nod his head she continued,  "well, I believe the object had merely become dislodged.  If you take a close look just in here" she said indicating a small crevice just to the right of where the object had been wedged "then you'll see that it looks to have dropped down and to the side, impeding the flow of matter that regulates the device.  This interrupted flow, combined with our earlier examination of the device caused it to activate.  The loud whining sound that knocked us unconscious is a result of the misdirected flow and the reason we ended up in this particular reality is a direct result of the settings we had unknowingly punched in during our examination."

"But you _can_ get us back, right?" Jack questioned looking back and forth between Sam and Daniel whom were both shifting from one foot to the other in obvious discomfort. 

"I believe so sir.  It's merely a matter of reversing exactly what we did in the first place and Daniel thinks he's almost deciphered the translations so, between the two of us, we should be able to return to our own reality" she finished.       

"We _should_ be able to return?  But you're not _sure_?" the Colonel questioned wondering yet again what he could have possibly done in his lifetime to deserve the bizarre situations he had found himself in over the past few years. 

"Well…I can't be 100 percent but I'm relatively confident this will work sir" Sam stammered uneasily. 

"Well then that will have to do.  How much longer before that thing is ready to go?" Jack asked indicating the alien device.

"I just need to finish translating the last set of writings and then we should be able to leave.  Maybe a couple of hours or a little longer?" Daniel suggested.

"Two hours?" the Colonel repeated.

"Or a little longer" Daniel reiterated, "unless of course you want me translate this wrong and risk ending up somewhere else?"

"Fine, just finish it," the Colonel barked.  "Teal'c, stay here with Daniel just in case any trouble comes up. Carter, you're with me.  We need to go back to the control room and see if we can find out anything from those computers.  The phones are down and Teal'c said the last set of gate coordinates was erased.  Let's see what we can dig up."

"Yes, sir" she replied following him out of the room.    

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The base seemed eerie as they walked through the empty corridors.  The lighting was minimal and the many people who usually roamed the corridors of the SGC were no more.  Even the sounds of the various types of machinery the base used on an everyday basis were now absent.  Reaching the control room, Sam and Jack entered and began looking around.  Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, Sam walked over to the main computer terminals and began hurriedly tapping the keyboard to retrieve information.  She sat back and sighed after several minutes of furious typing. 

"Problem?" the Colonel asked.

"Yes sir.  I've been attempting to access the most recent mission logs but the mainframe keeps denying me access and until I can gain access I can't determine anything" she said shaking her head.

"So…we aren't going to be able to find out what happened here?" the Colonel asked.

"There still might be a way sir.  When I was designing the systems I programmed a back door.  Maybe my counterpart in this reality took the same precautions.  If so, I might still be able to access the mainframe and determine what happened.  Providing the information still exists somewhere in the system" she concluded.

"That's assuming that your counterpart was part of the SGC in this reality," Jack said coming to stand behind her.  "And what's this about a back door?"

"I created a back door, a code that only I was aware of, in case the main system was ever damaged or compromised.  That way we could remotely access the main gate controls from another location on base if necessary" she concluded.  

"So why didn't you use this back door thingy when Linea took over the base computers?" he asked knowing that it was highly unusual for his 2IC not to explore every option at their disposal.  

"I tried sir, but she somehow managed to circumvent my precautions and lock me out of the system" she replied, obviously unhappy with the way things had played out during that particular mission.  

"Don't worry about it Carter.  These things obviously can even happen to the best of us," he said with a small smile.  'One thing about Carter is that she doesn't like to lose' he thought to himself.  And that was why he was so confident that his 2IC would once again find a way to break through the encryptions and pull the information they needed from the mainframe. 

Recognizing the compliment under the teasing tone, Sam smiled as she continued her task.  All of a sudden she sat back and exclaimed, "We're in" and proceeded to pull up several files.  

"Access the personnel files for the base.  Let's see how closely this reality parallels ours," the Colonel ordered.

"Yes sir," she replied and within seconds the monitor displayed several files listing the SGC's last known command structure.  Opening several of the files, Sam looked up to find the face of her CO staring back at her from the computer monitor.  Glancing briefly at the picture and then to the data she raised her eyebrows in surprise.  "It looks like you received a promotion 'General'," she said to the man hovering over her shoulder.  "A very recent promotion."

"What happened to Hammond?" the Colonel questioned.   

"One moment sir," she replied pulling up several more files.  "According to this, General Hammond resigned his commission due to…" she stopped scanning several more sentences.  Sitting back with a stunned expression on her face she looked to Jack and shook her head.  

"What is it Carter?" he asked trying to read the file from where he stood.

"He resigned due to an undisclosed terminal illness.  According to the information here, he died within forty-eight hours of handing over command of the SGC" she concluded. 

"Pull the files for the rest of the team and let's figure out where things stand," he ordered. 

"Yes sir.  It looks like SG-1 consisted of yourself, at least until your recent promotion, Teal'c, Lieutenant Michaels and Captain Haggerty," she said with a confused look on her face. 

"Where's your counterpart Carter?  She's obviously somewhere around here or you wouldn't have been able to use that back door to break into the system.  And what happened to Daniel?" Jack asked.

"I'm checking sir.  Oh no" she exclaimed softly as she read the file displayed in front of her.   

"What is it?" the Colonel asked immediately alarmed at the emotion in her voice.

"According to this, Daniel was killed in action nearly two years ago" she replied.

"How?" he asked, shock plainly written on his face.

"It doesn't say sir.  Although, I'm sure that we could find out from the mission reports.  They must be on record somewhere," she said as she began searching for files that would reveal what had happened to the archeologist in this reality.

"Leave it for now" the Colonel ordered.  "What about your counterpart?" he asked fearing that something similar may have happened to Sam. 

"I don't show an active military record for my counterpart sir" she responded as she continued to pull up additional files.  

"Check the roster of civilian personnel assigned to the base.  We've seen other realities in which you weren't military," the Colonel said wondering if something had also happened to Carter in this reality.  

"Yes sir" she absently replied as she continued to search through the data.  It was still unfathomable to her that she would be anything but military.  Continuing her search of the civilian roster she finally announced, " I found it" and then sat back and simply stared at the screen.

"Carter?" Jack asked wondering what she had found.  "What is it?"

"Nothing sir, it's just not what I expected that's all" she replied as she went to close the file.  

Leaning over, Jack stilled her hands on the keyboard while he read the file.  And then he too went silent for a moment.  Raising his eyes to look at her he said quietly, "It's not like we haven't seen this before now is it?"

"No sir, I guess it's just that I've never seen it in black and white so to speak" she answered looking back at the screen as she once again read the information displayed on the screen.

Dr. Samantha Carter-O'Neill

Civilian consultant- Astrophysics

Retired Military as of 04/01/1999

"It says that she retired from the military three years ago and continued on with the project as head of Research and Development.  It also says that we, or rather they, have a fourteen month old child," she said looking down toward the desk.  It was true they had run into other realities where she and Jack were either engaged or married but none of them had ever mentioned a child.  She wondered, not for the first time, if they had made the right decision when they decided to place their feelings on hold to continue their careers and their fight against the Goa'uld.  

"It's okay Sam" Jack said placing a hand on her shoulder.  He had a pretty good idea what thoughts were going through her mind, not so much as a result of knowing her so well, but merely because the same thoughts were rushing through his own mind.  

"I know" she replied, closing the file and scanning through several more files listing base personnel.  "It doesn't seem like there is anything else that is drastically different as far as personnel and job assignments are concerned."

"Can you find anything that will tell us what happened here?  I don't know about this other me but I know that I wouldn't have just up and declared a holiday for no reason" the Colonel quipped. 

"No sir" she agreed wryly.  I can't find any mission updates for the last two months which basically correlates with the time you…I mean your counterpart, assumed command of the base."

"Which means that whatever happened to Hammond was probably tied into this whole mystery," he concluded.

"I believe so" Sam answered and then stopped typing to lean forward and look at some information in the latest file she was reviewing.  "Oh no" she exclaimed softly and sat back in her chair with a hint of tears glistening in her eyes.  

Jack began to worry as he looked at the face of his 2IC and her dejected posture.  "What is it Major?" he asked knowing that he probably wasn't going to like the answer.

"According to this information, there was a Goa'uld attack on the planet almost three months ago.  A mother ship entered the planets' atmosphere and began firing upon several key targets throughout the world," she said continuing to read the file. 

"But what about the planetary treaty with the Asgard?" the Colonel asked.  "Don't they have that in this reality?"

"Apparently so, and according to this, the Asgard stepped in and thwarted the Goa'uld attack by destroying the mother ship" she replied. 

"So, what's the problem?" the Colonel asked. 

"The real purpose of the Goa'uld visit to Earth was to release a toxin into the atmosphere which rendered the planet uninhabitable.  Basically, it was a chemical that, once inhaled, caused the immune system to break down and the body to turn on itself causing all bodily systems to erupt and shut down" Sam said trying to fathom how any race could be so ruthless as to annihilate an entire species.    

"Then that means that Hammond…" the Colonel began.

"Was not at the SGC at the time of attack and was infected by the toxin" Sam finished for him.  

"How fast does this stuff work?" the Colonel asked. 

"According to these records, symptoms started within seventy-two hours of the attack and mimicked a severe case of the flu.  Bodily deterioration continued at a rapid pace and most people were dead inside of a week after inhaling the agent.  It's a very horrible death sir and these people would have suffered unmercifully," she concluded. 

"There wasn't any way to reverse it or find a cure?" Jack questioned.     

"I doubt they would have had enough time.  According to these records" she said indicating the information displayed on the monitor in front of them, "we detected the chemicals in the atmosphere but didn't realize what was going on for almost forty-eight hours.  By that time, it was too late.  All human and animal life would have been infected. The damage had already been done."

"So what happened to the people that were manning the base?" 

"It says here that your counterpart ordered an immediate lock-down at the time of attack. At that time the base automatically switched over to a self-contained ventilation system effectively blocking the possibility of infection. A short time later most of the remaining base personnel were transferred to the Alpha site. A few remained here to collect any final data they could before joining the others at the alternate site," Sam concluded. 

"So" the Colonel began, "you're telling me that everyone that was topside at the time of attack is dead?  That no one is left alive?"

"Yes sir" she solemnly replied.  "The only people left alive are the eight teams that were off world and those that were on duty at the time of the attack." 

"Okay, so why did they leave the base intact?  Usual procedure dictates a self-destruct procedure as soon as the final team gates through to the Alpha site" Jack pondered. 

"I know but the Goa'uld wouldn't be able to use the planet so they wouldn't have had to worry about hostiles gaining access to the Alpha site via the SGC and from the looks of this data it will be thousands of years before the chemical fully dissipates. They probably figured it would be safe to come back through and use the equipment as needed," Sam surmised. 

"Right" the Colonel muttered in a clipped voice as he tried to hold his anger in check.  "Let's get back to Daniel and Teal'c and fill them in," he said as he turned and headed for the hallway that would ultimately lead them back to their teammates. 

"… And, that's the story" the Colonel concluded watching the horrified looks cross the faces of his teammates as everyone gathered around the device, quietly looking to one another as if hoping someone would crack a smile at any second and tell them that it was some terrible April Fool's Day prank.  

"This is not the first time the Goa'uld have rendered a planet uninhabitable" Teal'c offered. 

"Yeah but why would they render the planet uninhabitable after destroying the population?" Daniel questioned.  "I mean, surely they would gain more benefit in coming down to the planet and acquiring new technology or at the very least, information." 

"In this case the people of the Tauri posed more of a threat to the Goa'uld than the lure of discovering new technology Daniel Jackson" Teal'c informed the archeologist.  "The Goa'uld reason that it is better to destroy an enemy and gain knowledge elsewhere than to risk allowing that enemy to continue to live."   

"That's all well and good but do we have any idea which scum sucking snake was responsible for this massacre?" Jack asked as he turned to Sam hoping she had been able to retrieve that information from the computer files.  

"No sir, the records didn't say…" she stopped mid sentence as a base wide alarm sounded indicating the formation of an incoming wormhole and activation of the stargate. 

"Alright people, we've got company.  Let's go check it out," the Colonel ordered as they grabbed their weapons and made their way toward the gate room.  "Any idea about who this could be?" he questioned as they rounded the corner and approached the gate room.  

"I noticed earlier that they disengaged the iris so it could be anyone sir" Sam replied taking her position next to the large doors that would allow them access to the gate room.  

"Well, whoever they are, let's just hope they're friendly" Jack muttered as they entered the room and assumed defensive positions not far from the ramp.  Just then the all too familiar swoosh of an incoming wormhole was heard and the gate room became bathed in the blue shimmering glow of the event horizon.  Suddenly, two figures stepped through the gate and began walking down the ramp.  With weapons raised, SG-1 was surprised to find themselves staring into the faces of Jack O'Neill and Samantha Carter. 

TBC

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	4. Chapter Four

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Chapter Four

"What the…" muttered the man that had just stepped through the gate only to find himself targeted by four separate weapons.  

"Sir, if I'm not mistaken, I would say that these are our counterparts from this reality," Sam told her commanding officer.

"Alright, stand down" the Colonel ordered as he cautiously lowered his weapon. "Keep an eye out for trouble," he quietly told Teal'c as they made their way to the debarkation ramp to meet the stunned people who had just stepped through the gate.  

Inclining his head in silent acknowledgement of Jack's words, the Jaffa brought up the rear of the group, his hand steady on his staff weapon, poised to strike should the situation warrant it.

"So who the hell are you people and what are you doing here?" General O'Neill questioned coming straight to the point.

"I see we need to work on our introduction skills," muttered the Colonel as he came face to face with his counterpart.  "The name's Jack O'Neill and as you're probably aware, this is Major Carter, Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c" he said pointing to each of his team members in turn.  

"We're from an alternate reality and only arrived here a few hours ago" Major Carter elaborated seeing the confused looks on the newcomers faces. 

"Samantha?" the General questioned, obviously confused by Sam's words.

"I don't know Jack," the woman answered.  Turning to Sam, she stared at her for a moment.  True, with the exception of a few cosmetic differences they looked the same.  'So this woman was promoted to the rank of Major' she thought to herself wondering at what point in the time line that would have happened.  Aloud she said to the members of SG-1 "How can you be from an alternate reality?  We destroyed our quantum mirror some time back."

"Uh, we didn't use the mirror" Daniel said stepping to the front of the group.  "We ended up here as a result of a glitch in an alien artifact we were examining."

"Danny," the General said softly in a manner that was both questioning and disbelieving.

"Hi Jack," the archeologist said awkwardly, having previously been told by Sam and Jack that his counterpart had died a while back. 

Realizing that everyone's attention was now focused on him, the General straightened himself up and merely replied "Good to see you again, so to speak."

"Thanks" Daniel responded with a small nod of his head.

"We were hoping to find out exactly what happened before we return to our own reality" Sam said looking at SG-1's counterparts.  "We figured out a lot of it from the information in the computer files but…"

"Computer files?" questioned the General turning to look at Samantha.  "I thought we had protocols to protect against anyone walking in and accessing information?"

"You do" assured the Colonel before Samantha could respond.  "But this is Carter, or one of the Carter's or… whatever.  Anyway, they both have this back door thingy that allows them to access the system, even if it is locked down."

"Back door?" the General asked turning again to Samantha for explanation.  

"Yes Jack" she replied.  Taking a deep breath she continued, "When I designed the system, I programmed a back door in case the main computer was ever compromised.  This way we would be able to access the system remotely from anywhere on the base."

"I knew that" the Colonel said to no one in particular.  Seeing the looks on everyone's faces and the glare from his 2IC, he shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot.  "What?" he exclaimed to no one in particular. 

"And you didn't think this would have helped us when Linea decided to take over the base computer?" the General asked.

"See" the Colonel said softly nudging Sam.  "That's the same thing I said."

Shaking her head, Sam looked at her counterpart and merely said "Linea found a way to lock you out of the system too?"

"Yeah" Samantha muttered in disgust as she thought back to the events that had taken place during that mission. 

"Well folks, this little reunion has been… nice, but we need to retrieve what we came for and be on our way.  When did you say you were leaving?" the General asked, letting SG-1 know, in a not-so-subtle way, that their visit was at an end.

"Well, the device is about ready to go but there seems to be a problem with last part of the translation" Daniel said looking at his best friend's counterpart.  "And we really were hoping to learn about what happened here before we left."

"Why?" the General asked not relishing the idea of recounting the morbid chain of events that had led to the destruction of his world.  

"Well, because it might help us prevent the same outcome in our own reality" the young man replied. 

"You don't even know that this whole mess will happen in your reality," the General countered. 

"True, but we don't know that it won't happen either" Daniel argued.  "Wouldn't it be better to know the details up front so that we have a chance of changing the outcome?  Or do you really want to take the chance of another reality being wiped out by the Goa'uld?"

The General simply stared at Daniel for a long moment and then suddenly his face broke out in a smile.  "I've missed you Danny," he said patting the archeologist on the back.  "Things just haven't been the same since you… left." 

"So, you'll tell us what happened?" Daniel asked.

"Why not?" the General asked.  "But we need to make it quick.  Samantha and I need to get back to base camp ASAP."

"Why don't we go to the briefing room," Samantha suggested.  "We can talk there."

"And then you can tell me about this 'translation' problem" the Colonel said quietly to the archeologist. And as SG-1 followed their counterparts to the briefing room, they each felt a sense of dread at what they were about to discover. 

TBC

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	5. Chapter Five

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Chapter Five

"So…" the General said looking around the room.  "Where would you like us to start?" he asked looking at Jack.

"How about we start with the Goa'uld attack and take it from there?" the Colonel answered leaning forward to allow his elbows to rest on the table.  

"Right" the General replied, clearly uncomfortable with the entire situation.  'Recounting this tale is bad enough' he grumbled to himself 'but to have to sit across the table from yourself and your dead friend and recount everything is about as bad as it gets.'

"It started nearly six months ago.  We had been receiving reports from the Tokra that there was a new Goa'uld alliance forming that was much more ruthless and dangerous than the system lords had ever thought of being on their own.   Unfortunately, the Tokra never did discover which Goa'uld was pushing for the alliance" Samantha said.

"You make it sound as if the Tokra are no longer around," Sam stated picking up the note of pain in the other woman's voice as she spoke of their allies.  

"Most of them aren't" she replied.  "The Goa'uld have managed to all but wipe out the Tokra along with several other races that offered resistance.  There are still a few Tokra factions remaining but their numbers are very small and most of their leaders were killed during an attack that took place shortly before the attack on Earth began."

"Dad?" Sam questioned hesitantly, not certain if she was ready for the answer she feared was coming.

Sam knew the answer before she heard the words as she saw Samantha cast her eyes downward and inhale sharply.  "He was killed also" she replied as the General reached over to cover her hand with his own.  Giving him a small smile and a nod she silently assured him she was all right.     

"Okay" the Colonel said, trying to deflect the attention from Samantha to give her time to compose herself.  "We know the Goa'uld attacked in a mother ship and outright violated the treaty of protected planets and how the Asgard came to the rescue and destroyed the ship.  Couldn't they do anything to fix the damage?"

"You'd think so wouldn't ya?" the General said, displeasure clearly written on the features of his face as he thought about the 'help' they had received from the Asgard.  "Unfortunately, they now have their own problems.  Between the replicators and the Goa'uld, the Asgard are finding things a bit hectic.  They said they were low on resources and did not have the time or the means to help with the toxin.  But… and this is a biggie… they're really sorry for the Tauri's destruction and wish us the best in our new home."

"Well, that was big of them" the Colonel muttered.  'I bet they talked to Freyer' he thought to himself.  'That little gray guy is way harder to deal with than Thor.'

"Wasn't it though?" the General responded sarcastically. 

"So the toxin was released and it took forty-eight hours to detect it?" Sam asked.  "Why so long?  Why didn't anyone notice anything at the time of the attack?"

"Probably because we were kind of busy at the time trying to save our cities, contact our allies, yada yada yada.  You know the drill" the General responded. 

"Actually, there was no way anyone could have detected it at the time it was released" Samantha said.  "You see the toxin was released in the form of an inert gas. Basically, it was designed to be neutral until enough moisture gathered in the upper atmosphere.  Once a certain amount of moisture mixed with the gas, it became active and poisoned the atmosphere. By that time there wasn't anything anyone could do to counter the effect."

"So by introducing the gas into the atmosphere in an inert or innocuous form, it gave the gas time to spread undetected throughout the atmosphere thereby affecting the entire planet rather than merely the cities that were attacked.  That way when enough moisture had mixed with the gas it would expose everyone on a world wide scale rather than a mere fraction of the Earth's population" Sam said.

"Very sneaky" Daniel commented as he mused over the deviousness of it all.

"Indeed.  The Goa'uld knew that an outright attack against the Tauri would take too long and consume too many resources.  This method allowed minimal loss to the Goa'uld alliance while effectively eliminating the Tauri threat" Teal'c said.   

"Oh, it was effective alright," the General agreed.  "Most people started getting sick within a day or two of the gas going lethal.  At first the doctors thought they were looking at a bad flu epidemic but then the symptoms started getting worse and they began to realize there was a lot more than flu involved."

"Also, atmospheric readings had begun to filter in by that time and it wasn't long before we realized there was a correlation between the sickness and the toxin in the air.  But before we could mobilize and try to start doing anything we found that people were dying.  Most people died within a week of inhaling the toxin.  They were the lucky ones.  Some lasted as long as two weeks but in the end they were all dead.  Even if we could have found an antidote, there wasn't enough time to synthesize and distribute it" Samantha concluded, unshed tears glistening in her eyes.  

"That's one of the reasons we came back," General O'Neill said looking around at the stunned group that sat before him.  "Samantha and Janet are trying to find an anecdote in case the Goa'uld find the Alpha site and attempt this little trick of theirs again."               

"You need access to data and equipment to continue your research.  Things you wouldn't have at the Alpha site" Sam concluded.

"Exactly" Samantha answered.  

"Have you had any success so far?" Daniel questioned.

"Janet has managed to isolate some of the variables but we still have a long way to go.  Once inhaled, this stuff basically manages to rapidly break down every system within the body. We think we've managed to isolate one part of it and several other factors jump into play" Samantha finished.  

"Okay, so they attacked, tricked and killed everyone and… was that it?" the Colonel questioned.

"Wasn't that enough?" his counterpart asked bitterly.

"No, I think what Jack is trying to ask is if you've heard any more from the Goa'uld since they did this?  Any attacks on the Alpha site… that sort of thing" Daniel explained jumping in before an already tense situation became explosive between the two men.  Although he didn't know General O'Neill, Daniel was very familiar with Colonel O'Neill's reactions to bad situations.  Especially when they involved the Goa'uld.  And the General had not only lost friends in the attack but an entire planetary population.  Jack's reaction would be one of sarcasm and bitterness to cover up his feelings and he was pretty sure the General's psyche pretty much followed the same pattern.

"If the Goa'uld are aware of our existence then they're keeping it to themselves right now.  So far, we've maintained a pretty low profile while we organize and strengthen our position at the Alpha site but we do have plans to join up with the remaining Tokra as well as continue our own program to pay the Goa'uld back in full" the General said with a steel-like quality in both his eyes and voice.    

"I hesitate to ask, but how many people made it to the Alpha site?" Sam questioned quietly.  

Looking toward Samantha and then back at SG-1, Jack shook his head and quietly replied "364 people including the eight teams we had off-world at the time, the class of students taking the field trip of the upper levels when the attack began, and Cassie and Jayden" the General finished, momentarily closing his eyes as he spoke the last name on the list.  This time it was Samantha that placed her hand on his shoulder to lend support. 

"Uh, Jayden?" Daniel questioned.

"Our son, Jayden Daniel O'Neill" Samantha quietly responded.  

"Son?" Daniel and Teal'c echoed in surprise.  Looking at Sam and Jack, Daniel realized they didn't seem overly surprised by the information they had just heard.  Which meant they had left a few things out of their narration back in Sam's, or rather Samantha's, lab.

"Yes.  Jayden was ill the day of the attack. We couldn't leave him at the Daycare facility so we brought him to work with us and Janet offered to call Cassie to come to the SGC and baby-sit for a while.  It was probably the best thing that could have happened otherwise we would have lost them both" the General replied, the pain of almost losing a second son evident in his eyes.  

It was then that Daniel noticed the simple gold wedding bands on each of their counterpart's hands and realized they were not only colleagues but husband and wife as well.       

"So, you're not military in this reality?" Daniel questioned, directing his gaze on Samantha.  

"Retired military" she replied.  "I retired from the military nearly three years ago after I was injured on a mission.  I had broken my leg in several places and while the breaks healed, they left me with a noticeable limp. At that point, retirement was not an option.  However, I didn't want to leave the Stargate program so when General Hammond offered me the position of heading up Research and Development, I accepted."

"Which left the two of you free to pursue a relationship without the fear of fraternization regulations hanging over your heads" Daniel finished. 

"Yes" they both replied in unison   

"Speaking of Hammond" the Colonel began "why wasn't he here at the time of attack?"

"Any other day he would have been" the General confirmed "but on that particular morning he had attended a school function for his granddaughters.  The base went to immediate lock down when the attack began.  You know the drill, no one gets in and no one gets out. It wasn't long after he fell ill that I was promoted to the rank of General and command of the SGC fell to me"

"Which would explain why a classroom of children ended up at the Alpha site," Sam said.

"Yes, a class of 22 fourth graders were touring the upper levels and discovering the wonders of deep space radar telemetry when the base went on lockdown.  Unfortunately, the lock down never ended," the General concluded. 

"So it was the Goa'uld Alliance that was responsible for the attack on the Tauri and not one Goa'uld in particular?" Teal'c asked.

"Our sources say the attack was implemented by the Alliance but that Osiris is boasting himself to be the brains behind the operation.  If we had known two years ago what those damned jars held…" he stopped momentarily as he sighed and rubbed his eyes.   "It's my fault, I shouldn't have let Daniel try to play the mediator and just shot them as soon as I saw them" the General muttered, his voice filled with self-recrimination.  

"You couldn't have known what would happen" Samantha assured him knowing he still blamed himself for the situation.  "And if you had known, you still couldn't have prevented the final outcome." 

"Wait a minute" Daniel interrupted the pair as their words began to sink in.  "You encountered Osiris _two _years ago?  And why do you keep saying 'he'?" 

"Because 'he' is the one who is responsible for all of this as well as Daniel's death," the General snapped.  Or maybe I should say 'they' are the ones responsible" he amended. 

"But we just found Osiris earlier this year.  Our last encounter with her showed she had begun to form an army but didn't have the resources to destroy a planet full of people," Daniel explained remembering their previous encounter with Osiris. 

"Well, WE found them two years ago and believe me they've had plenty of time to amass more than enough resources to cause all of this" he indicated the current condition of the SGC with a wave of his hands.  

"You continue to say 'they' O'Neill" Teal'c said to the General.  "To which 'they' are you referring?"

"To Osiris and Isis of course" he said looking at each of the members of SG-1 carefully as he heard the gasps and saw the shocked expressions on their faces. Seeing their confused expressions as they looked back and forth between one another he asked, "Whom did you think I was referring to?"

"Ah, that's a little different than things in our reality" Daniel began trying to clear up the confusion and hoping to learn more about how both Osiris and Isis had managed to survive.  "You see, it all started with the death of my mentor Dr. Jordan.  I flew to Chicago to attend the funeral and ran into Sarah and Steven who were former colleagues of mine. They were working on cataloging some ancient Egyptian artifacts when a fire broke out killing Dr. Jordan.  After the funeral, I stayed on for a few days to assist Sarah because the Egyptian government was pushing to have the artifacts returned.  It was then that I discovered the canopic jars were inscribed with Goa'uld translations.  I took the Isis jar back to the SGC where Sam examined it and found the dead Goa'uld larvae that had been stored in stasis. Upon my return to Chicago, I was unable to find the Osiris jar.  When people started getting killed in unusual 'accidents' and based on Sam's examination of the Isis jar, I began to suspect that we might have a goa'uld on the loose.  Only I mistakenly thought it was Steven because he had stolen an Egyptian amulet and flown to Egypt.  Anyway, to make a long story short, Sam, Janet and I traveled to Egypt to stop Osiris who, in the end, escaped in a mother ship." 

"The beginning of your story is very similar to the way things happened here in our reality" Samantha began as she looked to the General as if asking for permission to tell them of the events that took place.  Upon seeing him nod, she continued, "Daniel's professor was killed in a fire here also and he went to Chicago to attend the funeral.  It was then that he met Sarah and Steven again for the first time since joining the Stargate program.  In the end it turned out that both Goa'uld had survived stasis and were now residing in their bodies.  The only difference being that, in this reality, Osiris inhabits Steven's body and Isis is in Sarah's body.  Anyway, Daniel figured out what was going on and Jack, Daniel, and Janet traveled to Egypt in an attempt to stop them from carrying out whatever plans they might have had.  A struggle followed and Janet was rendered unconscious while Jack was injured.  Osiris turned the ribbon device on Daniel in an attempt to obtain the location of the stargate and ended up killing him."

"He never told them the location of the gate," the General said brokenly as he recalled the events of that fateful day.  "I tried to stop them but they were already in the transporter rings by the time I started firing.  They transported to their ship and left the planet.  They've been making a place for themselves amongst the system lords ever since and the rest, as they say, is history."

The room lapsed into an uncomfortable silence as each person sat lost in their own thoughts.  Without warning, General O'Neill stood up and announced that he and Samantha needed to gather the information and supplies that she and Janet would need to continue their research.  There had been reports of recent Goa'uld activity within the system and they shouldn't be away from the Alpha site for too long.

"I'm going to head on over to the armory and gather supplies," the General said giving Samantha a smile.  "Will you be okay in your lab on your own?"

"Of course" she replied.  "And don't forget to pick up that box of Daniel's books.  We still need to try and have Lieutenant Michaels translate the inscriptions on the temple we found."

"Inscriptions?" Daniel asked suddenly looking like an excited child.  "What type of inscriptions?"

"We found a small structure or temple that contains several sets of inscriptions on the door.  So far we've been unable to gain access and Lieutenant Michaels hasn't had much luck deciphering the translations" Samantha replied.

"Wait a minute," the Colonel said in confusion.  Looking at his counterpart he asked, "you picked an Alpha site that is already inhabited?"

"Was inhabited," the General quickly corrected.  "And no, we didn't detect this temple when we did our preliminary surveys.  The thing is located pretty far into the jungle and was covered by trees.  The only reason we found it is because we established a couple of teams to scout for resources once we arrived."   

"Do you have any idea what this temple was doing in the middle of the jungle or how long it has been there?" Daniel asked excitedly.  "Are you sure that whoever built it isn't coming back?"

"All good questions Danny which is why we need the books to try and figure it out" the General answered, making ready to exit the room.  "You have your radio Samantha, call me if you need anything," he said, leaving the room to begin gathering necessary supplies. 

"If you'd like, you can come with me to my lab.  I can give you copies of some of our research to take back with you. You could use it as a starting point to continue researching on your own.  It might help save some time and some people in case the Goa'uld try the same thing in your reality" Samantha said as she turned to exit the briefing room.

"Actually, I think I'm going to follow me, I mean him, and see if he needs any help with the supplies" Jack said nodding to his 2IC.  "Let me know when you're ready to head back."

"Yes sir," Sam said as she watched him leave the room.

"I think I'll go too.  I want to take a look at some of those archeological books," Daniel said as he made his way toward the door.

"I shall accompany you Daniel Jackson" Teal'c said as he followed the archeologist out of the room, leaving the two women alone.     

"Men" Samantha muttered with a small smile on her face.  Turning to Sam she gestured for her to follow.  "Come on, maybe you can take a quick look at our data and find something we may have missed. Or at the very least, give us some ideas on different directions we might be able to take with our research."

"Sure" Sam agreed following the woman into the corridor.  "And I can show you the device that transported us here.  It's really quite amazing…" she began as she started outlining some of the more interesting aspects of the alien device.  

TBC


	6. Chapter Six

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Chapter Six

"So, Jack" Daniel tentatively began speaking to the General as they made their way to the base storage facility which housed the deceased Daniel's books and research notes, "do you have any idea which language or culture may have once occupied the temple?"

"Well, we have two linguists and one archeologist at the Alpha site but they can't seem to agree on anything except that they don't agree.  But, if you ask me, I'd say it was probably the Ancients" the older man said as they came to the door of the storage room.

"What makes you think that O'Neill?' questioned Teal'c.

"Because I spent some time a while back with all of their knowledge jammed into my head and although it was all taken out, courtesy of the Asgard, the symbols still seem familiar" he concluded.

"So the people at the Alpha site haven't been able to decipher any of the writings?" Daniel questioned momentarily envying the scientists the opportunity to further decipher and understand the language of the Ancients.

"Nope, not a thing" the General replied as he stopped to stand in front of a small stack of boxes.  Eyeing Daniel warily for a moment he asked, "Do you know how to translate their writings?"

"I had some experience when we went through the time loop" the young man responded absently as he began sifting through the box nearest to him.

"Time loop?" the General questioned noticing how the Colonel suddenly seemed to study an imaginary spot on the ceiling and shift from one foot to the other.  Obviously this time loop was something that O'Neill didn't want to remember or at least, didn't want to discuss. 

"Um, yeah" Daniel replied absently as he looked through a large book that had yellowed with age.  "Jack and Teal'c were stuck in a time loop a while back due to a time travel device devised by the Ancients to save their dying civilization.  Unfortunately, it didn't work properly and they kept living the same day over and over until we finally figured out how to translate the writings on the device and shut it down."

"And how long did this take?" the General asked.

"Several months" Teal'c replied as his facial expression became slightly haunted.

"I take it you didn't get a chance to experience the same time loop," the Colonel asked.

"No, I think I would have remembered that one" the General answered.  Looking to Daniel he continued "Daniel, why don't you stay here and sort through these books?  I figure you know more about which ones may be useful to the geeks at the site then I would," he said stopping as he realized what he had just said.  

"Sure" Daniel replied looking to the Colonel for confirmation. 

"Yeah, it's fine" the Colonel agreed.  "Teal'c" he said turning to the Jaffa, "stay with him."

"As you wish O'Neill," the warrior replied as he watched the Colonel and the General continue on toward their destination.  

"Not that you're a geek or anything like that Daniel" the General amended remembering his comment about the scientists as the Alpha site. 

"Yeah, sure Jack" Daniel said absently as he began to sift through the box of texts.

With a slightly uncomfortable look, the General turned and exited the room as the Colonel's face took on a slight smirk.  'At least I'm not the only one that sticks my foot in my mouth' he thought.

The two men continued their trek in silence for a few moments when the General turned to his counterpart and asked a little uncomfortably "so you and Carter aren't involved?" 

"What?" the Colonel asked more out of shock then anything else.  'This is so not the conversation I want to be having with myself or rather _him_' Jack thought to himself.  The truth of the matter was that he envied the other man.  Not because of his rank and of course he certainly didn't envy the man the position of trying to hold together what was left of humanity but he did envy him for being able to do the one thing that he himself could not.  Make a life with Sam.  After all, it was something he had daydreamed about way too many times but until one of them retired or the fraternization regs were changed then there wasn't much either one of them could do without risking a court martial.  And Jack wasn't willing to risk Sam's career.  'We'd probably have a better chance of wiping out the snakes' he thought to himself sadly.

"I asked if you and Carter were involved" the General repeated bringing his counterpart back to reality.  "I realize that she's under your command and all but surely you've thought about it?"

"You of all people should know that it just isn't possible," Jack said quietly.  "Neither one of us are ready to give up the fight against the Goa'uld and retirement is not an option at this time. Besides, Carter is career military.  I can't see her giving it up."    

"No, not voluntarily" the General said remembering how hard early retirement had been for Samantha.  "Of course, Samantha didn't have a choice after her injury but things were still difficult at first."

"Yeah well, you're the lucky one" Jack said as they arrived at the artillery lockers.

"Lucky?" the man asked with a deprecating laugh.  "My planet has been rendered lifeless, the only remnants of humanity are in a galaxy far, far away and it's my job to see to their survival. But yeah," he conceded giving the Colonel a wry grin "when it comes to Samantha and Jayden then I guess you could say I'm lucky."

"Yeah, I guess so" the Colonel agreed.

"You're lucky too though," the General continued with a small catch in his voice.  "You've still got Daniel.  Things just haven't seemed the same since his death and you wouldn't believe how many misunderstandings we've had on missions with the inhabitants of other planets.  It's a wonder that we haven't been speared, beheaded or scalped on some of our missions because the geeks that call themselves linguists mistranslated initial conversations." 

"Good help is sooooo hard to find nowadays" the Colonel muttered.

"You have no idea," the General agreed. "Could you grab a couple of those," he asked tossing a duffel bag toward the Colonel. 

"Sure," Jack replied placing several Zatniktels in the black duffel.  "Anything else?"

"Yeah, a couple of those and some of these" he answered indicating several other types of weapons as he loaded his own duffel with extra ammunition.  

"Got 'em" Jack called as he zipped the duffel and threw it over his shoulder.  

"Good, let's get Danny and Teal'c and head back to Samantha's lab.  She should be about finished by now."

And with that the two men exited the artillery locker and headed back to meet with Daniel and Teal'c.     

 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Is that the device you mentioned?" Samantha asked as she entered her lab and noticed the alien device.  

"Yes" Sam answered as she picked the device up and brought it to her counterpart for inspection.  "There are markings here along the outer casing, she continued as she pointed out the unusual alien markings.  "Daniel said it's a derivative of Latin but he's still trying to translate this last set of markings along the outer rim."

"Hmmm…" Samantha remarked absently as she peered inside the casing to get a closer look at the internal mechanisms.  "You said the device emitted a loud whine before you were transported to our reality?"

"Yes, although I think that was my fault.  There was a small object that was lodged right here in this little crevice.  The noise began after I removed the piece.  Four hours later we woke up to find ourselves here in the lab," Sam explained.

"It looks like it might have disrupted the matter stream" Samantha replied as she studied the device in closer detail.  "It's too bad we don't have more time to study this and exchange notes on our realities but we are going to have to get you all back to your reality before the entropic cascade failure begins."

Sam nodded her head in agreement as she shuddered slightly, remembering what her previous counterpart had gone through when she and Kawalski had stepped through to her own reality.  "What about the research you mentioned?" she asked as Dr. Carter-O'Neill began pulling up various files from the computer at the far end of the lab. 

"I'm copying our research files now so that you can take them with you" she answered as she transferred the appropriate data. 

"Howdy campers," the Colonel called as he, General O'Neill, Teal'c and Daniel re-entered the lab.  Looking up from the files, Sam was surprised to see the men laden with so many supplies.  In addition to a couple of boxes of books, both the Colonel and the General carried duffels of weapons, ammunitions and MRE's.  

"Samantha, did you get everything you need?" her husband asked.     

"Yes, we're just about finished here" she replied handing a small stack of disks to Sam.  "All I need to do now is retrieve…" she stopped mid-sentence as the base alarms sounded.

"More of your people coming through?" Jack asked the General as he laid the duffel down and grabbed his own weapon.

"I don't think so.  Everyone had strict orders to stay on the planet.  Samantha and I are the only ones that have any business here," the General replied.

"Teal'c, let's go check it out" the Colonel ordered handing Teal'c a zatniktel.  "Carter, Daniel, make sure that device is ready to go in case we have to make a quick exit.  We can't leave the mountain because of the toxin and the only other way out would be the gate."

"I'm coming with you," the General commented.  "Samantha, see if you can help them with that device thingy and keep your radio on" he ordered as he followed the other two men out of the lab.

Arriving at the gate room, the three men entered with weapons raised just as the Stargate whooshed to life.  Several seconds later a lone figure carrying a small bundle came running through the gate looking back as if being chased.  "General O'Neill" the figure called to the man that met him at the base of the ramp.

"Simmons, what are you doing here?  What's happened?" he asked as he took in the man's disheveled and bloodied appearance.

"The Alpha site, sir" he responded gasping for breath from the staff weapon blast he had taken to his left side, "It's gone, everyone's gone.  Jaffa came through the gate and death gliders came from the sky all at once.  We tried to stop them but there were too many of them.  They took some of the children back through the gate and a few of the women but everyone else is dead" the man finished giving a cry of agony and clutching his side. 

"Who was it Simmons?" the General asked as he tried to suppress the emotions threatening to erupt at any moment.  

Opening his eyes, he looked at the General with a mixture of terror and pain.  "Osiris sir.  The Jaffa wore the mark of Osiris."

"Alright, let's get you to the infirmary and see what supplies are left to patch you up.  Then we'll figure out what we do now" the General choked out.

"No sir.  Not enough time" the Lieutenant uttered as he was momentarily overtaken by a bout of coughing.

"What do you mean not enough time?" the Colonel asked as he leaned down to gently speak with the dying man.

Seeing two Jack O'Neill's was enough to cause the man to momentarily forget his circumstances and his eyes went wide and he looked from the General to the Colonel wondering what he had missed.

"It's okay Simmons," the General said giving the Colonel a wry smirk.  "We ran into a couple of friends from an alternate reality.  Now, what do you mean there isn't enough time?"

Just as Simmons was about to answer, the base alarms began to sound once again.  "The Jaffa that followed me to the gate," he answered pausing as he gasped for breath, "they're on their way here."  And with his warning delivered, Lieutenant Simmons gasped and coughed one last time, and died… 

Suddenly, the small bundle Simmons was clutching began to move and the ear-shattering cry of an infant could be heard.

"What the hell…" the General muttered as he leaned over to inspect the bundle.  Removing the wrapping, the man was surprised to find himself staring into the face of his own son.

"Jayden" he whispered in shock having believed his son had been killed along with the others at the Alpha site.  Choking back the tears he lovingly picked up the child and   looked at the corpse of the man who had given his own life to bring him not only a warning but his son as well.  "Thanks Simmons, I owe you," he said quietly.  Giving the body one last look he turned to the others "Let's get back to Samantha's lab.  Maybe we can use that device of yours to beam ourselves out of here while we figure out what to do next."

"What of the Jaffa?" Teal'c asked.  "Should we not stay and fight?" 

"If I know Osiris, he'll send everyone he has through the gate to destroy what's left.  We need to get out of here now or we're all toast." the General replied.

"What about Simmons?" the Colonel asked.

"Leave him.  I'm hoping the Jaffa will be fooled into thinking he was the only one here. Seeing him lying there may serve to slow them down and buy us some time," the General said.

"Okay folks, let's move out" the Colonel said as they quickly made their way to the lab. 

TBC

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	7. Chapter Seven

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Chapter Seven

Samantha let out a cry of surprise as the men entered the lab carrying her crying son.  Holding out her arms, she gratefully accepting the squirming little boy from her husband as her eyes held so many unasked questions.

"Simmons came through the gate with Jayden" he replied to her unspoken question.  "He said the Alpha site has been destroyed by Osiris and the Jaffa are coming through the gate as we speak.  We need to find a way out of here now!" he finished as he searched through the duffel bag for more weapons.  

"But Jack," Samantha began as she watched her husband revert to 'full General mode' "Where are we supposed to go?  We can't go to the surface because of the toxins. And knowing Osiris, the Jaffa have orders to destroy the mountain."

"Carter, Daniel" the Colonel called to his team who were looking on in shock at the sudden turn of events.  "Is that doohickey ready to go?"

"Yes sir but Daniel thinks that it's capable of more than just travel to alternate realities," Sam answered as she made her way to the device and began adjusting the controls on the outer casing.

"In English Major," Jack said hurriedly as he and Teal'c assumed defensive positions on either side of the doorway.  

"Well, he thinks it's capable of…"

"Time travel Jack," Daniel interrupted Sam as she began to relay his findings to the Colonel.  "I finished translating the writings on the outer casing with the help of one of the texts that I, he, I mean _Doctor Jackson _of this reality had, and this device is amazing.  It can actually take a person back to the exact same place in time as well as to another reality" he finished excitedly.

"Could you take us back to before this whole Goa'uld mess began?" the General questioned.  

All eyes in the room suddenly turned to Daniel in anticipation of his answer.  The room became quiet and even Jayden seemed to realize the importance of Daniel's next words.

"It's possible," Daniel said slowly, rubbing his hand across his chin in a gesture of heavy contemplation.  "Given a little bit of time I think we could program the machine to send you back before the Goa'uld attack began on Earth.  But Jack, I need to go back over the translations to be sure.  I'm going to need time to…."

"Danny Boy, time is the one thing we don't have.  Can you do it or not?" the General practically shouted in frustration. 

"Not with absolute certainty.  If I don't go back over the translations, I could make a mistake in programming the coordinates and who knows where we would end up.  Or even _when_ we would end up…" the young man finished as he looked apologetically back and forth between the General and Samantha.  "I just can't be sure yet." 

"Daniel," the Colonel began as he realized they were running out of time, "Can you get us back to our own reality?"

"Yes.  Sam just finished setting the coordinates, but what about them?" he asked pointing to the General and his family.  "They can't stay here and if they come with us then they're risking Entropic Cascade failure by staying in our reality."

"They could come back here" Jack replied quietly.

"Sir," Sam began as she saw the look of confusion which crossed Daniel's face upon hearing the Colonel's words, "If they're right about Osiris's intentions then there won't be a 'here' for them to come back to."

"I realize that Carter. Look, Daniel said that device is capable of traveling not only to alternate realities but through time as well.  Right?" Jack asked, looking at his 2IC expectantly.

"Yes, sir" she replied.

"Well then, we take them back to our reality, let Osiris do whatever it is she, I mean _he_, is going to do here and then we use that thingy to go back in our own reality to a time before this would have happened in this reality and zap them back here. Once we bring them back here we return to our own reality and then back to our own time."  Stopping for a moment he looked up to see not only Sam but also everyone else staring at him. "What?" he asked in typical Jack O'Neill fashion.   

"That might work" Samantha said.  "If you brought us back here before any of this happened we could take the information that we've already gathered and plan a line of defense."

"No Goa'uld attack?" the General asked questioningly.

"Well, we probably couldn't prevent that but we could alert the Asgard and attempt to stop the mother ship from reaching Earth in the first place.  We could also try to develop an antidote just in case we can't stop them in time." Samantha answered.    

"No destruction of Earth, no annihilation of the Alpha site and no end of humanity" Daniel mused thoughtfully.

"And we would still have copies of the research in case the Goa'uld in our reality try anything similar," Sam said. 

"Well campers, what are we waiting for?" the Colonel asked.  "Carter, Daniel, get your stuff.  General, Samantha, grab whatever you're going to need when you get back. Teal'c, it's time to go."

"But what about Simmons?" Samantha asked looking down the hall.  "Why isn't he here yet?"

Walking over to his wife, the Colonel sadly shook his head. "Samantha, he didn't make it.  He died in the gate room."

Grasping Jayden a little more tightly she allowed a small sob to escape before gathering her research.  The loss of Simmons was another tragedy on an impossibly long list of good men and women that had been lost to the Goa'uld.  An entire planet full of men, women and children but, if they played their cards right, they would be able to go back and perhaps change all of that.  Looking down at her sleeping child she silently vowed they would change the events of the last three months.  She owed it to him and everyone else who had fought so hard.  

Suddenly, they heard a commotion at the far end of the hallway and then the inevitable footsteps of the approaching Jaffa.  Grabbing the duffels of supplies, Jack motioned for everyone to stand together while Sam picked up the device. Just as the first Jaffa reached the lab and began firing his staff weapon, Sam pressed a sequence of buttons and SG-1, along with the last remnants of humanity from this alternate reality, were swathed in a pinkish light and disappeared before the very stunned Jaffa's eyes. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The pinkish glow of the alien device diminished as quickly as it had appeared.  This time there was no ear shattering, unconscious rendering sound emitted from the device, merely a very disoriented group of people left standing in the middle of Sam's lab.  

"Well, I guess we fixed the problem" Daniel said, pointing to the device.

"Indeed.  We did not lose consciousness this time" Teal'c added as he took in the familiar surroundings of Sam's lab.

"Wow" Samantha said as she allowed her gaze to travel around the room she was now standing in.  "That's amazing," she added, checking Jayden for any indications of side effects from the journey to the new reality.  Finding no ill effects, she began examining several experiments in various states of completion.

"Scientists" the General said to Jack in a teasing tone of voice as he noticed his wife's interest in the objects on the counters.  "It doesn't matter what reality they come from, they're all the same."  

"Tell me about it" the Colonel muttered.

"Sir," Sam said coming to stand directly in front of the Colonel.  "I think we may have a problem," she continued indicating the alien device. "A portion of that last staff blast hit the edge of the device just before we dematerialized.  I'll need to study it to be sure there wasn't any damage before we attempt to use it again."

"First we'll take our friends to meet General Hammond and debrief and then you can examine that thing for as long as you want" the Colonel replied.

"Well actually sir," Sam returned "I'll have to make it fairly quick.  I don't think we'll have more than 24 hours at best before the entropic cascade failure begins."

"Sheesh Carter, it was just a figure of speech," the colonel said in an exasperated tone of voice.  Shaking his head, he continued  "You can start on it immediately after the debriefing ok? And then, I'm going to get that lunch we missed.  Or should I say dinner?"

"Yes sir," she answered looking up as the base alarms began to sound.

"Unscheduled off-world activation."  

"Now what?" the colonel muttered exiting the lab and heading toward the gate room.

The gate room was a picture of organized chaos as the klaxons sounded throughout the room.  Soldiers rushed through the massive door from all directions and took their places on either side of the debarkation ramp, guns trained on whoever or whatever might step through the gate.

Meanwhile, SG-1 and company hurried to the control room in time to hear General Hammond ask, "Sergeant, do we have confirmation on who is attempting to come through the gate yet?" 

"Not yet sir but… Wait a minute; we're receiving an IDC signal now.  It's SG-7 sir," the Sergeant stated confirming the code displayed on the console before him. "They're under attack."

"Open the iris Sergeant" the General ordered "and get a medical team down there in case they've sustained injuries."   

"I thought they weren't due back for several more days?" Daniel asked.

"They aren't Dr. Jackson.  SG-7 is on a research mission to study the ruins found on   P3X 881.  According to our preliminary reconnaissance, the planet wasn't inhabited" the General stated.

"Here we go again," Jack muttered, remembering the last supposedly uninhabited planet SG-1 had encountered.  'That mission ended with a trek across the universe and some bad reminders of Goa'uld hospitality courtesy of Osiris and her merry men' he thought sourly.

All eyes turned toward the Gate as four figures came hurling through its' shimmering waves followed by some poorly aimed staff weapon blasts. 

"Close the iris" the General said to the Sergeant.  Activating the intercom, he ordered the troops in the gate room to stand down.  Upon hearing the General's words, the troops guarding the gate lowered their weapons and stood at ease while several medics rushed forward to assist SG-7.

"They look alright but let's make sure" the General stated in a matter-of-fact tone.  Turning to face Jack he noticed General O'Neill, Samantha and Jayden for the first time.  "Colonel, care to explain what's going on here?" he asked with apparent confusion as he wondered what SG-1 had managed to stumble into this time. 

"Certainly sir."  Seeing his commanding officer's confusion, a small smile tugged at the corners of Jack's mouth.  'Yep, now the fun part really begins' he thought to himself as he envisioned Hammond's reaction to the 'nowhere-but-a-sci-fi novel' story that would soon unfold. 'And they all thought my fish story was unbelievable' he grinned, remembering the _slightly_ exaggerated tales of his fishing exploits at his cabin on the lake.

"Colonel, I want you to accompany SG-1 and our guests to the debriefing room," the General ordered.  "I'm going to check on the status of SG-7 and then I'll join you."

"Yes sir" Jack answered as the General made his way out of the control room.  "This ought to be fun," he muttered to no one in particular as he escorted the group to the nearby conference room.

TBC


	8. Chapter Eight

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

**Chapter** **Eight**

Twenty minutes later General Hammond arrived in the conference room.  Glancing around the room at the faces of the people seated in front of him, he marveled at the amount of trouble SG-1 seemed to attract.  'They weren't even on a mission' he thought to himself in exasperation.  Looking over to where his second-in-command sat quietly watching, he merely said "Well, Colonel, are you going to introduce me to our guests?"

"Yes sir," Jack replied wondering what the best, or rather the most believable, course of action would be given their current situation.  In the end he decided the most direct approach would be best when dealing with the General. "Sir, this is General O'Neill, Dr. Samantha Carter-O'Neill and their son Jayden."

"Welcome to the SGC" General Hammond said acknowledging the presence of the O'Neill's and their son.  "I'm assuming you're from an alternate reality but what I can't figure out is how you arrived here.  It couldn't have been through the quantum mirror because I ordered ours destroyed a while back."

"No sir," General O'Neill replied.  "We actually came here by means of some doohickey that your people brought with them to our reality" he said as he looked to Samantha to see if he had phrased the circumstances of their arrival with any degree of accuracy at all.  

Listening to General O'Neill's description nearly made Hammond laugh.  'He's Jack O'Neill alright' he thought to himself 'even if he is a General.'  Aloud, he asked "What do you mean 'a doohickey that my people brought to your reality,'" the General asked.  "SG-1 isn't scheduled for another mission for another 48 hours.  They've been on base all day, although I've heard a few officers say that couldn't seem to find them a while ago," he concluded looking over to the Colonel with a rather stern expression.

"Actually sir…" the Colonel said in an effort to address both the question of the means of arrival and his own team's whereabouts for the afternoon "we were here on base but then that alien doohickey started glowing and flashing and knocked us out cold.  When we woke up we were in their reality."

General Hammond sat quietly for a moment trying to decipher the information the Colonel had just given him. Deciding that at this rate they would be here all evening, he looked to Sam in hopes of a clearer explanation.  "Major Carter, would you care to explain to me what Colonel O'Neill is trying to say?"  

Looking to her CO with an apologetic expression on her face, Sam began the tale of their arrival to and from the alternate reality.  With the help of the entire group, she told the General of their accidental arrival to the other reality, the search of the abandoned base, the discovery of the events that had transpired after the Goa'uld had unleashed the bio-toxin into the atmosphere, their unexpected meeting with General O'Neill and Dr. Carter, the arrival of Simmons and Jayden, the Jaffa attack on the base and their narrow escape back to their own reality.  

Hammond sat back for a moment trying to absorb the story and the horrific chain of events the Major and the rest of the group had just imparted to him.  Questions were forming in his mind so quickly that he didn't know where to begin.  In a matter of six and a half hours, SG-1 had managed to knock themselves out, awake in an alternate reality, uncover the events leading up to Earth's annihilation, meet their counterparts, observe the destruction of the last of humanity via the attack on the Alpha site, translate the markings on the alien device to discover a time machine, engage Osiris's Jaffa, and bring the only 3 remaining members of humanity back to this reality.   'These people really need to take a break and learn to relax' he thought to himself as he once again remembered how this was to be a nice quiet, final assignment on the road to retirement.  Not for the first time Hammond wondered what he had done to deserve such a fate.  Mentally shaking himself, he returned his focus to the matter at hand.

"So where do we go from here?" he asked noticing the saddened expressions on everyone's faces.  "Major, wasn't there a problem the last time we had someone from an alternate reality come here?"

"Yes sir, when Dr. Carter and Major Kawalsky arrived from the other alternate reality.  Dr Carter experienced the effects of entropic cascade failure due to the fact that we were both occupying the same reality," Sam answered.

"Wouldn't it be logical to assume that we can expect the same type of situation in this case since both you and Colonel O'Neill exist in this reality?" the General questioned.

"Yes sir, we estimate that we only have about 24 hours before the effects start taking place, possibly less since we both existed in their reality as well.  We really have no way of knowing what the effects of sharing existence in two different realities in such a short period of time might be.  However, since Colonel O'Neill and I don't share the same relationship as General O'Neill and Samantha, we are certain that Jayden will remain unaffected," she concluded a little self-consciously.  It was hard enough pushing her own thoughts and feelings to the back of her mind when it came to Jack O'Neill.  She didn't really want to think about the fact that her alternates in three separate realities had managed to find a way to share their lives with him, or rather the other Jack O'Neill's, when she could not.  Nor did she want anyone to start drawing parallels and begin to wonder about her and her CO in this reality.  'What a mess' she thought sadly.   

"Okay they obviously can't stay in our reality much longer. So where will they go?" the General asked.

"Well, actually we're planning to send them back to their own reality sir," Daniel said.

"But you all just said the Earth is uninhabitable in their reality and we are assuming the Jaffa destroyed the base during their last attack.  And even if the base wasn't destroyed and the Jaffa have left and were no longer a threat, the fact remains that they would be the only surviving members of humanity," the General reminded the archeologist.  

"Well, yes that's true General, but when translating the symbols on the device we brought back from P3X 964 we discovered that not only is the device used to travel between realities but also to move back and forth through time," Daniel replied realizing the entire concept of time travel seemed a little unreal.  'Then again, we not only traveled back to 1969 but forward in time as well before returning to the SGC so maybe it doesn't sound as far-fetched as one might think' he thought to himself.  

"What Daniel's trying to say sir, is that we intend to travel back in time to this reality so that we can travel to the past in our own reality and warn the SGC of the events to come.  We've analyzed samples of the toxin and were in the process of trying to create an antidote or neutralizing agent when the Alpha site was attacked.  If we could get this information far enough in advance we might be able to find the antidote before Osiris' ship ever reached Earth," Samantha said as she noticed Jayden was beginning to awake. 

"They might even be able to enlist the Asgard's help before the mother ship reaches the planet," the Colonel said.

"Will the Asgard actually help before the attack begins?" General Hammond asked. "Wouldn't the protected planet treaty stand in their way if the Goa'uld hadn't yet showed any signs of aggression?"

"That could be a problem sir, which is why we want to go back in time far enough before the attack to give ourselves time to prepare against the toxin," Samantha agreed.

"Sort of a Plan B" General O'Neill chimed in reaching over to take a now squirming Jayden from Samantha's tired arms. 

"There could be a problem with all of this though," Sam said as she looked at the faces of the people surrounding her.

"Just one problem Major?" the Colonel asked sarcastically wondering if there would ever come a point in time when they could just come up with a plan and execute it without any unexpected surprises.

Realizing the Colonel was tiring of the debriefing Sam gave him a small smile before continuing.  "The Jaffa found us in Samantha's lab just as I was entering the final coordinates to bring us back here to our own reality.  Some of the energy from the staff weapon hit the device.  I still need to analyze the device for any possible signs of damage."

"Well then, I think that's the next item on our agenda.  You can begin working on it in the morning Major" the General said as he stood up at the table.

"But sir, with all due respect, I really think I should begin examining the device immediately," Sam protested.

"Major Carter, it's been a long day for everyone, it's late in the evening and I dare say you all have not eaten or rested since late this morning" Hammond said as he looked around the table.  When no one contradicted him, he continued  "I realize that you're anxious to begin working on the problem at hand and believe me Major, I understand the gravity of the situation as well as the deadline we're facing.  However, you will not do any of us any good if you're too tired to think clearly.  Now, Jayden looks hungry so I suggest you all go to the cafeteria and get something to eat.  I'll make arrangements for our guests to occupy one of the VIP suites and you can begin working on the problem first thing in the morning.  We'll meet here again at 1100 hours to re-assess the situation."

"But sir…" Sam protested.

"This is non-negotiable Major.  Understood?" the General asked in a tone of voice that clearly indicated he would accept nothing less than complete obedience.

"Yes sir," Sam acknowledged rising slowly from her chair. 

"Oh, I almost forgot" the General said as he reached the doorway, "SG-1, you are to remain on base tonight in case any medical problems arise from your visit this afternoon.  I'll notify Dr. Fraiser of today's events should the need for medical attention arise."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It wasn't too long after dinner that Jack showed General O'Neill and his family to one of the VIP suites.  

"Well, it's not much but it'll work for this evening I guess," Jack quipped a little awkwardly as he showed the O'Neill's around the suite.  There'll be someone outside the door at all times if you need anything so don't hesitate to ask."

"Why are we being guarded?" Samantha asked.  "Don't you trust us?  After all, you found us.  We didn't go looking for you."

"Relax Samantha," her husband said quietly as he tucked Jayden into bed.  "It's standard procedure.  We would have done the same thing."

Samantha had the good grace to look ashamed and walked over to the Colonel.  "I'm sorry," she told him with a small, apologetic smile.  "It's just that so much has happened today that I guess I'm a little on edge."

"It's okay" he assured her with an understanding smile.  "I would have lost it long before now if I were in your shoes.  Besides, Carter will make sure that alien thingy works and then we'll go back and make things right in your reality.  Okay?  Just hang in there a little bit longer."

"I'll try.  I'm not sure how well I'll do but I will definitely try" Samantha answered.   

"If you're anything like our Carter then you'll succeed with flying colors.  I've never met anyone stronger or smarter.  I'll stop by at 0700 hours tomorrow.  We can all get together for breakfast and come up with a game plan, ok?" the Colonel asked the couple as he made to leave the room.   

"Fine," the General agreed.

"Colonel," Samantha called just as Jack stepped into the hallway, "I'd really like to help with the device if possible."

"I'm sure Carter would like that," he assured her as he left the couple to themselves for the evening.    

A couple of minutes later he found himself standing outside of Sam's quarters wondering if he should knock or just continue on to his own quarters for the evening.  Lifting his hand to rap on the door and announce his presence, he was surprised to see the door suddenly open and find an obviously shocked Sam standing before him. 

"Colonel… sir" she stammered.  "I didn't realize you were out here."

"Going somewhere Carter?" he asked wondering why she seemed so nervous.

"Uh, not really sir.  I thought I'd take a little walk, you know, to clear my head before turning in" she answered.

"Uh huh" he replied as the reason for Carter's nervousness suddenly dawned on him.  "And this route you were planning to use for this walk wouldn't happen to coincidentally pass by your lab would it?" he asked with mock innocence. 

"I hadn't really thought about it sir," she replied missing Jack's amused smile as she stared fixedly at a non-existing spot on the floor. 

"Yeah right," he said pushing her back inside the room and closing the door behind him. "Sam, I know you're anxious to start examining that alien device but it can wait until morning.  Besides, the other Carter wants to help.  I figure with two Carter's working on the problem then it'll get solved twice as fast."

"There may not even be a problem sir.  It's possible the device didn't sustain any damage at all," she said looking directly at him for the first time since he appeared at her door. 

"Well then, waiting a few more hours definitely won't hurt, will it?" he said grinning.

Sam smiled in response as she looked at him.  'How is it he can always manage to make me smile?' she thought. 'Even when I'm caught disobeying orders and sneaking off to my lab to work?' 

"Was there something you needed sir?" she asked suddenly trying to distance herself from the emotions that threatened to break free at any moment.

"What?" he asked confused by the sudden change in questioning.

"You stopped by," she explained.  "Was there something you needed?"

"Ah, no, not really" he stammered.  "I just thought I'd check on you and see how you're doing.  You know, with this whole twin thing?" he said picking up a pencil from her desk and nervously fiddling with it.

"Oh…" she replied.

"Well…" he prompted.

"Well, I guess I'm okay with it.  I mean it has happened before but somehow it still feels so _weird_ looking up and seeing, _yourself,_ for lack of a better word" she said thoughtfully trying to put into words some of the feelings that were still confusing her. 

"Yeah," I still find it hard to look up and see _him_.  After all, one of me is plenty, don't you think?" he asked waggling his eyebrows at her. 

"Oh DEFINITELY," she agreed laughing at his boyish antics.

"What about, you know, them being together and all and the baby…" his voice trailed off as he tried to phrase his question in a way that wouldn't make Sam close herself off more than usual when it came to talking about their relationship 'or lack thereof' Jack thought.

She sat there so still and quiet that Jack was afraid she wasn't going to answer.  A thought that worried him because he needed to know they were still okay.  Finally, after taking a deep breath she looked straight at him, catching her bottom lip between her teeth in a nervous gesture, her eyes conveying so much more than mere words ever could.  

Silently, he reached out and took her in his arms and held her in a protective gesture that spoke volumes of his feelings.  It was one of the few times they ever allowed themselves to get close to one another.  Each giving and taking the comfort they so desperately needed.  

"It's hard," she said in a muffled voice against his chest.  "Seeing these other realities, seeing _them_, it just seems like we're missing out on something special."    

"I know," he answered clutching her more tightly and gently rocking back and forth  "but one day Sam, I swear one day we'll get there.  Wherever 'there' is for us.  We just have to hold on. We just have to believe."

"I do," she assured him as she pulled back far enough to look into his eyes.  Eyes she knew she could become hopelessly lost in forever if she would only give herself the chance. "And I know that what we're doing is important especially after seeing all of the lives lost to the Goa'uld in these other realities.   But sometimes…" she sighed, allowing her voice to trail off.  

"I know, sometimes…" he agreed wondering if the war with the Goa'uld would ever come to an end.  Loosening his hold on her, he pulled back just enough to see her face as he spoke his next words, "I seem to always end up asking you this but… are we okay?"

The earnestness she saw in his expression as he once again asked if they were 'okay' nearly brought her to tears.  She thought about the question for a moment as she asked herself if they were truly okay.  Could she really continue on like this?  Finally, she looked up and flashed one of her most brilliant smiles as she nodded her head.  "Yes Jack" she answered.  "We really are okay," she told him and in her heart she knew she meant every word. 

Hearing her confirmation, Jack sighed and smiled back at her.  Now that he knew they would be fine he could relax a little and not worry so much about saying or doing the wrong thing.  'The wrong thing' he thought to himself as he finally seemed to consciously realize exactly where he was and at what hour of the night.  "I should go," he said as he began to gently untangle himself from their embrace.

Sam stood still for a moment and stared at him wondering at the abrupt change.  All of a sudden she too realized their surroundings and calmly shook her head.  "That would probably be best sir," she said trying to regain an acceptable air of professionalism.

A mischievous light shone in Jack's eyes as he stopped momentarily in the doorway.  "Carter," he said making certain he had her attention, "I'm ordering you to stay away from your lab and that device until tomorrow morning."

"Yes sir," she agreed as a frown marred her face.

Something in her expression caught his attention or maybe it was that she answered just that little bit too quickly but either way Jack knew she was up to something. Knowing Sam's penchant for bandying semantics when she wanted to have her way he thought back to what he had just said.  Suddenly, he grinned as he turned back from the doorway one last time.  "Oh, and Carter, when I say morning I mean we will all meet for breakfast at 0700 hours.  We'll start on that device thingy after breakfast and not a moment sooner.  Understand?"

Knowing she had been caught, Sam had the grace to blush and with a rueful shake of her head replied, "Yes sir, I understand. Morning doesn't begin prior to 0700 hours. Goodnight sir."

And on that note Jonathan 'Jack' O'Neill retired for the evening to his own quarters happy in the knowledge that for once, he had actually bested Sam Carter.

TBC


	9. Chapter Nine

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

**Chapter** **Nine**

Morning arrived all too soon for the SGC and after finishing a less than stellar breakfast in the cafeteria SG-1 and the O'Neill's found themselves back in Sam's lab examining the alien device from P3X  964.  

"Found anything yet Carter?" the Colonel asked for the fourth time as he sat in the corner of the lab bouncing Jayden up and down on his knee.

"Not since you asked me two minutes ago sir" Sam replied glancing at Samantha and Daniel with an exasperated look in her eyes. 

"Oh" Jack responded as Jayden let out a squeal of laughter at the Colonel's antics.  

"The child seems to have taken a liking to you O'Neill," Teal'c noted with a facial expression that resembled a look of approval.

"Nah, he's just biased" the Colonel said, laughing as Jayden's chubby little hands reached for his nose.  "After all, I look like his dad."

Upon hearing that remark, General O'Neill looked up from his work and grinned.  "I don't know about biased but I'd say the kid definitely has great taste."

Shaking her head at her husband's latest remark, Samantha pointed to a crystalline object at one end of the device.  "I'd say you're right about this being the main power source," she said to Sam as she placed the device on the counter and rubbed her eyes.  

"And this looks to have been a back-up power supply" Sam remarked as she pointed to a small rectangular object located just below the crystalline object.

"Um… I'm no expert guys but do you think that should be charred like that?" Daniel asked pointing to the back-up power supply.  

"No, and look at the crystal, it looks to have been damaged also" Samantha said.

"We need to measure the output of energy remaining in the device.  Without a back-up power supply the device may be practically useless," Sam stated as she began pulling out equipment from a nearby storage locker.  

"Useless?" both Jack O'Neill's asked in unison.

"We don't have an alternate power supply sirs" Sam informed them, a grim expression adorning her face.

"Look Carter, you're a whiz with that Naquada stuff.  Couldn't you just rig up something and use the Naquada as an alternate power supply?" the Colonel asked.  

"We've done it before," Daniel pointed out.

"Yes, but not this time.  You see the device is dependent on the type of energy derived from a crystalline power supply.  If we attempted to introduce Naquada it would probably overload and burn out the remaining systems" Sam explained to the group.

"The whole thing could just blow up altogether," Samantha mused softly.

"Well that would be… bad," the Colonel muttered.

"Indeed" agreed Teal'c raising one eyebrow in typical Teal'c-like fashion.

"What if we could get some crystals from the Tokra?" Daniel asked.

"It's a good thought Daniel but there is no way to adapt them. The crystals used by the Tokra to create the underground tunnels are very specific in their functions.  It just wouldn't work" Sam answered.

"Before we get too worked up, let's try and see how much power is remaining in this device.  There may be enough for what we need," Samantha said, directing her comments to both Jack O'Neill's. "In the meantime, maybe you guys could go to the cafeteria, get some coffee and meet us in the conference room? It's almost time for our meeting with General Hammond."

"Yeah sure you betcha," the General muttered.  Turning his attention to the Colonel he asked, "Do you get the feeling we're not wanted here?"

"Whatever would make you say that?" the Colonel replied sarcastically.  "Come on kid, let's make a coffee run and leave the _Doctors _to finish their work in peace." 

Jayden merely giggled in response to the Colonel's good-natured grumbling and the men left the room accompanied by Teal'c.

"Thanks," Sam said to her counterpart.  "The Colonel can really get on your last nerve when he's bored."

"Tell me about it," Samantha replied giving Sam a conspiratorial wink.  

Ten minutes later a decidedly dejected looking trio entered the briefing room and took their seats at the table. 

"From the look on your faces, I'd say things aren't going too well," General Hammond began as he noted the expressions on Sam's, Samantha's and Daniel's faces. 

"No sir," Sam acknowledged and began relating the latest problems with the device. "The main power supply was damaged as a result of the discharged energy from the staff weapon blast.  In addition, the back-up power supply was completely destroyed.  It looks as if the blast created an energy feedback loop and overloaded the primary and secondary power supply components."

"Can you fix it Major?" the General questioned.

"No sir.  The power supply is of a crystalline base and I know of no compatible alternatives.  Anything we could rig up would be incompatible and at best, overload the device's systems," Sam explained.

"And at worst Major?" the General asked wondering if there was going to be any type of happy ending to this not-so-little problem.

"At worst it could destroy the device completely sir" Sam responded.

"Is there a bright side to all of this people?" the General questioned hoping that the legendary luck of SG-1 would win out yet again.

"Yes sir although we aren't certain how much of a 'bright side' it actually is.  The device still has some residual power remaining in the main crystal.  It's not much but it might be good for two if not three jumps at best," Sam said noting the thoughtful look on the Colonel's face.

"So it's settled then.  We take them back to their past and return to ours.  Two jumps, mission complete" the Colonel quipped matter-of-factly.

"It's not quite that simple sir," Sam said tentatively.  

"And why not Major?" the Colonel asked wearily.  'Why can't we just catch a break on this one?' he wondered.     

"Well sir, the device won't last more than one jump if we all try to go.  The more people that are transported the more energy is expended.  Now usually the power supply would automatically regenerate or rely on the back-up power supply unit in the event the crystal failed but as you already know, that's not an option.  We're merely hoping that what little power remains holds out long enough to return the O'Neill's to their own reality.  Therefore, we need to send as few people as possible.  In short, General O'Neill, Dr Carter and Jayden will have to return on their own."

"And you think this plan has the best chance of success Major?" General Hammond asked.

"Yes sir.  It's a risk but it's the best we can do.  The device only travels through time in any one given reality just as it only transports a person to an alternate universe in a time frame parallel to the one you are being transported from," Sam explained.

"In English, Carter" the Colonel muttered not understanding a word of what she had just said.

"Well sir, we can't just jump them from our present to their past.  The machine will only cross into an alternate reality on the same timescale.  That's why we transported to the exact same moment in time in their reality and not to some time in their past or future.  Therefore, in order to get them to their past, they will have to jump back into our past to the precise time in which they will need to arrive in their own reality.  Once they have traveled back they will have to set the device to cross realities so they arrive in their own reality" Sam explained hoping her explanation was simple enough so as not to further confuse anyone.

Teal'c, who had been quietly listening to Sam's explanations, questioned, "How far back in time will they travel Major Carter?" 

"Well, that's the other problem.  The greater the distance traveled the more outlay of power is required from the device.  In order to give them the best possible odds they will have to go back to a time very close to the Goa'uld attack," Sam answered.

"No margin for error?" the Colonel guessed.

"None sir," Sam replied.

"General O'Neill" Hammond said turning to the battle weary officer that sat across the table from him, "this is a very risky undertaking.  Are you sure that you want to go through with this?  We might be able to enlist the Tokra and settle you in a different reality."

"We're sure General," the man answered.  "We owe it to all of the people that were lost and even to Jayden to try and change things. We're both in agreement that this is something we have to do."

"General," Samantha interrupted "We may not have much time to try and change things but we've made a big start on our research and it's possible we can convince the Asgard to help before the ship ever reaches Earth.  We have to try."

"Let's suppose you manage to make the leap back in time within your own reality and that you manage to stop the attack and change the events of the past few months.  What then?  There will be two of each of you within that period of time.  What will you do?" the General questioned.

"Well, we could try using the device to travel forward and return us to our own time or, if that doesn't work, we could find an out-of-the-way place to settle down and live out our lives" General O'Neill answered. 

"That's a pretty big risk General," Hammond said in a stern tone, staring hard at the man who had so recently come to them from another reality.

"With all due respect sir, it's a risk that we're willing to take," the man answered returning General Hammond's look with an equal intensity.

"Very well, you have a go on this mission" the General said.  Looking to Sam he asked, "Major Carter, how long before the device is ready?"

"It's ready now sir and we're going to have to move within the next couple of hours before the cascade failure begins" Sam replied.

"But first I need to show you a few things regarding the research we've gathered so far on the bio-toxin.  It might help you if you ever have to face a similar situation in this reality," Samantha told Sam.  

"You'll depart in two hours," the General said.  "We'll meet at 1400 hours in Major Carter's lab and departure can take place from there."

"Yes sir," the Colonel answered.  "We may want to grab lunch before the two of you get started," he said motioning to Sam and Samantha.  "I have no doubt that when they arrive back in their past they are going to have a lot of explaining to do.  Explaining that will take a long time."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Everyone was gathered in Sam's lab when 1400 hours arrived.  Samantha was going over last minute details regarding her research on the bio-toxin and Daniel was double-checking the coordinates on the device.  There was a nervous feeling in the air and even Teal'c seemed a little edgy.

"Good luck," Sam said giving both the General and Samantha a hug goodbye.  "I wish we could be there to help you but the risk of being able to sustain the power supply on the device would be too great. Just remember that you'll need to jump immediately to your own reality after landing in our past.  You can't afford to spend the time going through all of the inevitable explanations on account of the cascade failure."

"I know," Samantha said.  

"Well, I guess this is it," General O'Neill quipped shaking General Hammond's hand.

"Yep, just another trip into Wonderland," the Colonel replied in his familiar sarcastic tone of voice.

"Let's just hope the White Rabbit stops long enough to help you out this time," Daniel said giving General O'Neill a warm handshake.

"What is this White Rabbit you speak of Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked in apparent confusion.

"We'll explain it to you later Teal'c," the Colonel assured the Jaffa.  "In the meantime, take care of this little guy," he said pulling a piece of candy from his pocket for Jayden "and don't forget to kick some Goa'uld butt!"

"Not a problem," General O'Neill assured him.

"Um, sirs, we had better all clear out of the lab while they make their exit.  Otherwise, we'll end up four and a half months in our own past," Sam said as she handed the device to Samantha.

Exiting the room, the group took one last look at General O'Neill, Doctor Samantha Carter-O'Neill and their son.  Each sent forth their own silent form of well wishes as they made their way to stand at the end of the corridor and wait for the pinkish glow of the device to fade.

"Well, I guess that's it," Sam said as SG-1 and General Hammond re-entered the recently vacated lab.

"I don't think so, Major," the Colonel replied with a small smile.

"What do you mean Jack?" the General asked. 

"Oh, something just tells me they're going to be ok," he replied softly.

"Let's hope so son," Hammond said. "But for now, SG-1, I am postponing your next mission until Tuesday of next week.  Until then you are on stand down for the remainder of this week.  I do not want to see you back on these premises until Monday is that understood?" 

"What about SG-7 sir?" the Colonel asked.

"What about them?" the General answered, surprised at the change of topic.

"Well sir, they came barreling through the gate yesterday from a supposedly uninhabited planet with Jaffa on their tales.  Don't you want us to check it out or something?" Jack clarified.

"No son.  The members of SG-7 are fine with nothing more than a few scrapes, bruises and a sprained wrist.  I can't find anything with enough strategic value on P3X 881 to justify sending another team into a known hostile environment to investigate" the General told them.  "Besides, I think SG-1 has had enough excitement for a few days, don't you?" 

"Yes sir," Jack answered for his team. "Thank you sir" he called as Hammond left the room.  Turning to his team he smiled as an idea formed in his mind.  "So guys, movie and pizza night at my place this evening?" He grinned when he heard the various replies of "Sure but no anchovies", "Sounds great", and "as you wish O'Neill."  'Yep, life is definitely good,' he thought with a satisfied grin.

TBC


	10. Chapter Ten

Disclaimer:  Please see chapter one for full disclaimer. 

Another Trip into Wonderland

Epilogue 

"Ah come on Carter, watching a few hours of hockey was NOT all that bad," the Colonel grumbled as they made their way to Sam's lab.

"I wouldn't say that five-and-a-half hours was merely a _few_ hours sir," she returned laughingly as she sat her coffee mug down on her desk.  Looking around she realized that something didn't feel right.  There was something different but she couldn't quite place her finger on it.  

"Hey Carter, isn't that the doohickey time travel device thingy we sent away with the other 'us' last week?" Jack asked, pointing to the device on the countertop.

"Yes sir," Sam confirmed examining the device and looking around to see if anyone else had traveled back with it.  "But why is it here and what is this?" she mused looking at the small package sitting next to the device.

"Early Christmas present maybe?" the Colonel joked eyeing the package warily.

"I don't think so sir" Sam said as she cautiously shook the box to try and get a better clue as to what might be inside.  Deciding the contents didn't sound too dangerous she removed the tape from the box and lifted the lid.  Inside she found a letter address to SG-1, and a newspaper with today's date. As Sam unfolded the letter a Polaroid snapshot fell to the ground of General O'Neill (who was now wearing the insignia of a Colonel), Samantha Carter O'Neill and a smiling Jayden reaching towards the camera.

"So what's this Carter?' Jack asked looking at the photo.

"It's from us, or rather them," she said as she began reading:

________________________________________________________________________

_To the members of SG-1 and General Hammond:_

We wanted to thank you for all your help in saving our planet.  The device barely has any power remaining but we're hoping there's enough left to get this package to you.  We were able to go back into our own time and warn the SGC of the upcoming events.  With the help of ourselves, (does that sound strange or what?) Samantha and the others were able to cook up an antidote.  Luckily, we didn't need it because information we brought back with us from our own time was enough to convince the Asgard of the nature of the Goa'ulds intentions.  Within the box you will find a letter addressed to Sam detailing the formula for the antidote in the unhappy event that you should ever need to use it.  You will also find a newspaper with today's date on it just to assure you that we did make it back to our own reality.  Anyway, that's all for now.  Tell Danny that crazy rabbit actually came through for us and that our tour through Wonderland was worth it in the end.

_Regards,_

_Colonel Jack O'Neill, USAF   _

______________________________________________________________________________________

Handing the letter to the Colonel, Sam removed the newspaper from the box and opened the letter containing the formula for the bio-toxin antidote.  

"They made it," Jack said quietly thanking whatever God was listening for giving the people of Earth another chance in the other reality. 

"Let's go tell the others," Sam said excitedly pushing him out the door.  And as they made their way towards Daniel's office Sam thought about the O'Neill family from the other reality.  'Someday' she thought to herself remembering the picture of the happy trio that had fallen out of the letter, 'Someday.'

The End 

Author's Note:  That's it folks!  I'd really love to know what you thought of the story. Please leave a review before exiting the story. Thanks! 


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